Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has opened its first joint research institute outside China in Singapore, in a collaboration with Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

The joint institute will explore technological breakthroughs and real-life artificial intelligence (AI) solutions in areas such as health, ageing and lifestyle.

Alibaba and NTU will commit a multimillion-dollar investment annually for an initial five years, and the institute will start with a pool of 50 researchers from both organisations.

Alibaba's contribution to the research institute will come from the $15 billion (S$20 billion) fund earmarked for the Alibaba Discovery, Adventure, Momentum and Outlook (DAMO) Academy programme.

NTU LILY research centre, Singapore’s first research centre focusing on technological solutions to address ageing problems, will also explore collaborations with the National Health Group under the NTU-Alibaba partnership.